Environmental Scan, 2002-03: Governance and Accountability.

Ontario's Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology have been governed by the Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities Act (MTCU) and related regulations and policies since their inception in 1965. In June 2002, the Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Act, 2002 (OCAATA) was passed by the Ontario legislature; proclamation is anticipated in 2003. There has been a great deal of attention paid by a variety of government and private organizations to the issue of accountability, and to the measures that can be taken to improve accountability. This paper offers examples of some Canadian public and private corporations' accountability reports. In addition, the paper examines accountability as applied to community colleges in California and New Jersey, and to Ontario's Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology, as well as to colleges in British Columbia and Alberta. There are three basic accountability models that the states use to determine performance: performance funding, performance budgeting, and performance reporting. Performance is measured by institutional improvement over time, comparisons with peer institutions, and comparison against preset targets. In British Columbia, Ontario, and Alberta, performance indicators are tied to funding in significantly different ways. The report recommends steps that can be taken to strengthen performance and accountability in Canada's public college and university governance. (NB)